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> ecologically disastrous Assuming that it is - which has yet to be evaulated in each case - what would we lose if we plant these solar cells in a desert where

> ecologically disastrous Assuming that it is - which has yet to be evaulated in each case - what would we lose if we plant these solar cells in a desert where noone really lives now?

JoeAltmaier 12y ago
What does it matter who lives there? That's absolutely irrelevant to the ecological impact of the project. Desert doesn't mean the same as 'no ecology'. Its in fact more fragile that other ecologies, dependent upon scare resources and balanced with a very predictable annual cycle of sun and moisture. Square kilometers of solar panels blotting out the light is a vast disruption of the desert ecosystem. There is no need to evaluate its impact on the ecosystem. Complete disruption is the result.
- arrrg 12y ago
  The interesting question, however, is not that. It’s whether that complete disruption is a worthwhile tradeoff. We make those tradeoffs all the time and just saying there is disruption is really not enough …
  - JoeAltmaier 12y ago
    Solar has the disadvantage of disrupting ecosystems in geometrically huge areas, unexperienced in human history. Worse than strip-mining. Worse than city growth. On the order of the invention of agriculture. Compare with Thorium reactors for instance, which could supply all our power needs for centuries, with negligible impact on the ecosystem. That's the tradeoff.
- agumonkey 12y ago
  What would actually happen ? heat reduction under the panel will surely be a big change. Maybe it would allow an ecosystem to develop, being detrimental to the panel grid. Maybe it they will just share space nicely.
- Sanddancer 12y ago
  There are regions of deserts though where there is no ecology. For example, there are huge portions of the Atacama Desert that don't even have microbial life forms in the soil, so placing a solar facility there won't impact any known form of life. Additionally, there are solar panels that are transparent [1] which could also help minimize the ecological impact of solar generation. Furthermore, one can spread out the solar panels, to again minimize the impact in ecosystems. Yes, blindly using solar can be detrimental, but done right, you can mitigate the impact. [1] http://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2015-03-23/invisible-solar-cells-that-could-power-skyscrapers http://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2015-03-23/invisible-so...

> ecologically disastrous Assuming that it is - which has yet to be evaulated in each case - what would we lose if we plant these solar cells in a desert where noone really lives now?

JoeAltmaier 12y ago

What does it matter who lives there? That's absolutely irrelevant to the ecological impact of the project. Desert doesn't mean the same as 'no ecology'. Its in fact more fragile that other ecologies, dependent upon scare resources and balanced with a very predictable annual cycle of sun and moisture. Square kilometers of solar panels blotting out the light is a vast disruption of the desert ecosystem. There is no need to evaluate its impact on the ecosystem. Complete disruption is the result.

arrrg 12y ago
The interesting question, however, is not that. It’s whether that complete disruption is a worthwhile tradeoff. We make those tradeoffs all the time and just saying there is disruption is really not enough …
- JoeAltmaier 12y ago
  Solar has the disadvantage of disrupting ecosystems in geometrically huge areas, unexperienced in human history. Worse than strip-mining. Worse than city growth. On the order of the invention of agriculture. Compare with Thorium reactors for instance, which could supply all our power needs for centuries, with negligible impact on the ecosystem. That's the tradeoff.
agumonkey 12y ago
What would actually happen ? heat reduction under the panel will surely be a big change. Maybe it would allow an ecosystem to develop, being detrimental to the panel grid. Maybe it they will just share space nicely.
Sanddancer 12y ago
There are regions of deserts though where there is no ecology. For example, there are huge portions of the Atacama Desert that don't even have microbial life forms in the soil, so placing a solar facility there won't impact any known form of life. Additionally, there are solar panels that are transparent [1] which could also help minimize the ecological impact of solar generation. Furthermore, one can spread out the solar panels, to again minimize the impact in ecosystems. Yes, blindly using solar can be detrimental, but done right, you can mitigate the impact. [1] http://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2015-03-23/invisible-solar-cells-that-could-power-skyscrapers http://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2015-03-23/invisible-so...